Bring Me to Life
by SerEndy.HauntingLove
Summary: Katniss is broken upon her return to District Twelve, beyond repair, or so she believes. Peeta sees the potential for their future, if he can get Katniss to believe it is OK for her to heal. The story of how she & Peeta grow back together. Canon through all 3 books, minus the last chapter before the epilogue.


**A/N: This is my first Hunger Games fan fiction. I saw the movies before I read the books & it intrigued me. I knew I was missing a lot just by the movies alone & I was not disappointed when I read the books. Well, that's a lie actually. I was disappointed in the ending. It was brief and really didn't tell us much. So this is what I would do. I have completely rewritten the last chapter before the epilogue. Story is canon through all 3 books, with the exception of the last chapter.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Hunger Games books. I am just a girl spinning a golden thread of story using Suzanne Collins characters.**

* * *

Katniss Everdeen knew one thing for certain – she was broken far beyond anyone's repair.

She had been back home in District Twelve for a little over two months before she came out of her haze long enough to look at herself in the mirror. Her hair hung limply past her shoulders in different lengths, greasy and matted. She couldn't remember the last time she had showered. Her face was pale and gaunt, the dark circles under her eyes a stark contrast to the whiteness of her cheeks. Her eyes appeared lifeless and hollow, even to her own gaze. She knew she had lost a significant amount of the weight she had put on in District Thirteen, where food was down to a science. They gave you enough that you had enough calories to keep you healthy, not enough to allow you to overindulge. Her skin was like a patchwork quilt of pale skin and light pink skin from the grafts. When she closed her eyes, she could feel the flames licking against her skin, the pain crawling up her. Prim's lips forming her name before she burst into flames – she opened her eyes with a gasp of pain as she dropped to her knees, sobs wracking her small body.

She had failed her sister in too many ways to count. It had been her job to protect her younger sister but antagonizing President Coin, not being more outwardly supporting of the leader of District Thirteen, had been her downfall in the end. President Coin had been killed by Katniss before she had the forethought to ask her why a fourteen year old had been in the medic field that day. No doubt she was a talented healer but not old enough to be on the front lines. She needed to get her mind off her gentle sister, whose shirt never stayed tucked in, creating a duck tail hanging over her pants. Katniss couldn't count the number of times she tucked her sister's shirt in for her, teasing her gently with her nickname of Little Duck. Of all the people she had lost, losing Prim was the one that was unbearable. She forced her mind off her sister as she forced herself back to her bedroom and the safety of her bed. That night, she dreamed about being buried alive by those who died along the journey. Prim. Finnick. Cinna. Boggs. The list goes on and on. Even as she wakes, the sound of the shovel scraping goes. Katniss tears down the stairs, still feeling stuck in the nightmare, and determined to get to the sound of the noise. She bursts through the door and skids to a stop on the porch. Words come out before she can stop them, or fully take in the scene in front of her.

"What are you doing here?" Her voice was harsh and demanding. The blue eyes looking back at her seem less haunted than the last time she had looked into them. The body was strong and lean, the burn scars that perfectly matched hers visible on his skin. His cheeks were flushed as he paused what he was doing. Five bushes sat in a cart next to him. A bubble of anger begins to boil in her chest as the word 'rose' registers before anything else, but before she can open her mouth and let the words spill forth, the remaining name of the plant comes to mind. Evening Primrose. These were the plants her gentle, kind sister had been named for.

"I found these in the woods. I thought we could plant them along the house." Peeta Mellark's voice was huskier than Katniss remembered, almost as if he were holding back unshed ears. Her heart softened just a bit. The loss of Prim would have hit Peeta hard as well, they had bonded during their time in Thirteen, Prim often calling Peeta the brother she never had. Peeta had lost his entire family when Twelve was decimated by bombs, and he had clung tightly to the friendliness of the blonde, once the Tracker Jacker venom had begun to wear off. He would never be completely sane, but Katniss thought there was a great chance he'd be saner during an episode than she could ever hope to be again.

"Ok." She bolted as the words left her mouth. She locked her front door behind her, and ran as fast as she could up her stairs and back into her bathroom, locking that door behind her as well. A few sobs escape her throat before she wrenches the door open and stalks to her study, her mind on one thing only. The smell of the artificially enhanced rose hangs heavily in the air, making her gag slightly. The white rose she was searching for was among the other dead flowers in the vase, dead but still delicate. She grabbed the whole vase and raced down the stairs, her heart beating wildly, anxiety flooding her whole body. She threw the flowers into the fire, watching them eaten quickly by the flames. For good measure she broke the glass vase on the ground. Heading back upstairs she decided to shower, to get the lingering smell of the roses off of her. Pressing a few buttons expertly on the Capitol shower, she was soon covered in a yellow foam that smelled faintly of lemons. After she had scrubbed herself hard enough to erase any smell of roses, and several flakes of skin the size of playing cards had peeled from her, she shut the water off and stepped out. It took her close to forty five minutes to wrestle all the tangles from her hair and braid it into its signature side braid. Wrapped in a fluffy white towel, she padded silently to her room, listening to the sounds below that told her Greasy Sae had let herself in to cook dinner. She rummaged through her clothes for what seemed like an eternity before settling on black, knee length pants and a forest green sleeveless shirt. She slipped her hunting boots on, relishing how the soft leather melded perfectly to her feet. For the first time she felt somewhat like herself. A broken version, but a version nonetheless. She quietly slipped down the stairs and was entering the living room when she froze. Sitting on her couch was none other than Peeta, fidgeting slightly, his nervousness showing on his face.

"Hi Katniss. I hope you don't mind I'm here. Greasy Sae let me in. She was needed at home, so I thought I could cook us dinner tonight?" the corner of his lips tugged up just slightly, and Katniss longed to see a full smile. She had missed him more than she had thought. During her months of self-imposed solitary confinement, she had tried to steer clear of thoughts of the boy with the bread, as it seemed likely he would never come back to Twelve; or to her.

Without saying a word she just nodded. He had cleaned up while she showered. The broken vase was no longer in sight. Her kitchen was immaculate, all dishes cleaned and put away. She tilted her head in curiosity as a new smell hit her nose. Peeta laughed as he saw her reaction.

"I'm making some cheese buns. I haven't baked in a while and I was hoping you'd be my taste tester." She smiled shyly, wondering where the sudden butterflies in her stomach came from. It had been a long time since she had made someone laugh, albeit without trying, and it felt wrong in a way. Like she was betraying Prim.

"Why did you come back?" All traces of a smile disappeared as he took her question in and pondered it, wondering how to phrase the answer.

"This is home. I can't imagine living anywhere else. I would have been here sooner had Dr. Aurelius let me. By the way, he says you should start answering your phone. He can't pretend to treat you forever." He was ladling the stew he made into bowls as he spoke. He was hoping Katniss would enjoy it, Greasy Sae had let him know she was not eating enough and had to be almost forced. Even if she hadn't said anything, it would have been immediately noticeable. He spoke again to fill the silence.

"I bought some lamb and made that lamb stew you love. I added extra plums." He placed the bowl into her hands. She stared down, emotions beginning to cloud her grey eyes. She dropped the bowl with a sob and ran up the stairs, her bedroom door slamming loudly through the house. In her room, tears poured down her cheeks. For a brief moment, when Peeta had told her what he made, she felt happiness. She had felt giddy that he remembered her favorite stew and wondered briefly if he remembered their time in the cave. Then she remembered Prim would never know another moment of happiness. She would never have a second chance. She had died knowing only pain. And Katniss felt her already broken heart break more, if that was even possible.


End file.
